Thursday, August 01, 2013

Cellphone use: How to be smart about it


Cellphone use: How to be smart about it



We all know cellphones are here to stay! Much as we feel we can’t do without them, we still need to take the correct precautions in their use, to protect ourselves and our loved ones from the electromagnetic radiation. Here are some tips to minimise your exposure to radiation when using a cellphone:

(1) Do not allow children to use a cellphone for calling. Children should not use cellphones except for emergencies. The developing organs of a child, lower bone density of the skull, lower body weight - and therefore a less effective blood-brain barrier - make children particularly vulnerable to the effects of cellphone radiation. 

(2) Limit phone calls to those that are absolutely necessary. Keep the length of those calls to an absolute minimum. The biological effects of cellphone use are directly related to the duration of exposure.

(3) As a rule of thumb, signal strength falls off in proportion to the square of the distance to the source. So if you double the distance to the source, which is the cellphone to your head, your potential exposure would be four times less, since two squared is four. Not holding your phone right next to your head is the easiest way to increase this distance. Speakerphone mode is another option. This enables you to hold the phone away from your body when you use it. The downside is that it makes the battery work harder, thereby increasing electromagnetic radiation levels.

(4) When dialing out, do not put your cellphone next to your ear until your correspondent has picked up the phone - your cellphone communicates at full power when it is connecting to a number. Hold your phone away from your body when you have finished dialing until the correspondant answers. When receiving an incoming call, give yourself a second or two before putting the phone next to your head once you have accepted the call.

(5) Avoid carrying your phone directly on your body. ‘Flight mode’ is a safer alternative but it’s better to avoid carrying your phone on your body. Even on standby, your phone communicates at full power.

(6) Using your cell phone in a parked car is not advisable. Any enclosed metal container works like a microwave oven and produces what scientist call a ‘Faraday cage’ effect. The electromagnetic radiation from your phone bounces round your car and is absorbed by your body at a higher level than would otherwise be.

(7) Never sleep with a cellphone switched on at night besides your bed or under your pillow. In fact, I would go so far to say never even bring the cellphone into the bedroom because there is always a risk you may  leave it switched on and, if you do, you are subjecting yourself to radiation all night. Cellphone radiation has been shown to impede the function of the immune system and reduce the production of melatonin at night.

(8) Avoid using your cellphone if you are feeling in any way run down;, the radiation will make you feel even more tired and will weaken your body further.

http://www.times.co.sz/features/89905-cellphone-use-how-to-be-smart-about-it.html

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